The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative
Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other
shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org.
March 25, 2014

Supreme Court Hears Corporate Challenges to Birth Control Mandate 
------------------------------------------------------------------


 
The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments today in two key cases about an
employee's right to birth control under the Affordable Care Act. The
cases challenge the requirement that insurance plans provided by
employers cover contraception. The law already contains exemptions for
religious nonprofits, but now two for-profit companies, Hobby Lobby and
Conestoga Wood, say they should also be exempt due to religious beliefs.
At stake is not only the issue of contraception, but the question of
whether corporations have religious rights. The case against the
contraceptive mandate has reportedly been bolstered by an alliance of
dozens of anti-choice and free-market groups working closely with top
state employees in Ohio, Michigan, Alabama and West Virginia. According
to records obtained by RH Reality Check, the group Alliance Defending
Freedom has played the role of "air traffic controller" by drumming up
legal briefs submitted to the court in support of the two companies.
Reproductive health advocates plan to hold a "Not My Boss's Business"
rally at the Supreme Court today.

 

.